Xbox One and PlayStation 4: Why You Should Wait to Buy

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November is approaching, and with it, Microsoft's Xbox One
and Sony's PlayStation 4. If you haven't already put in a
pre-order for one, don't beat yourself up about it. If history is
any indication, you're probably better off waiting a while than
pouncing on a brand-new system.

For one thing, consider the cost: If you want a
PlayStation 4 on launch day, you'll probably have to go
through retailer GameStop (the Xbox One bundles have long
since sold out). Don't think you can just grab a console and be
on your way, though. GameStop knows that you want the console
badly enough to throw some extra money at it, and thus only sells
it in bundles.

Admittedly, the PlayStation 4 bundles aren't unreasonable:
The basic ones include one game, and cost $460 ($400 for the
console, plus $60 for the game). However, if you don't want
"Killzone: Shadow Fall," "Call of Duty: Ghosts,"
"Battlefield 4," or "Madden NFL 25," you're out of luck. Games
like "Knack" and "Driveclub" only come with more expensive
bundles, which also include an extra controller. If you want your
first PS4 game to be "Watch Dogs" or "Assassin's Creed IV: Black
Flag," you'll have to buy it separately.

Although GameStop is currently sold out of Xbox One pre-orders,
the bundles were similar. Amazon sells PS4s and Xbox Ones
individually, but cannot guarantee shipping dates. Pre-ordering
them now will ensure that you get your system when the second or
third wave ships, but you may end up waiting weeks, or even
months, depending on how long it takes to restock.

Even if money is no object, there's still game selection to
consider. Both the Xbox One and PS4 will have very strong launch
libraries — a rarity, as gamers are usually lucky to get one or
two quality titles. In addition to the titles discussed above,
next-gen early adopters can look forward to "infamous: Second
Son" on the PS4, "Ryse: Son of Rome" on the Xbox One, and titles
like "Need for Speed Rivals" and " Skylanders
SWAP Force " on both consoles.

Current-gen Strengths

Here's what you might not know: With very few exceptions, you can
get these titles on current-gen consoles and PCs. "Ryse" and
"inFamous" will be exclusives, but almost every other title
discussed so far will be available on Xbox 360, PS3 and
Steam (for PC downloads). You will be sacrificing marginally
better graphics, smoother gameplay and a few next-gen exclusive
missions or features, but you will not have to live without
"Assassin's Creed" or "Need for Speed" if you hold off.

In fact, buying a next-gen system to play long-running series may
be disadvantageous. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are not
backwards-compatible, meaning you'll be unable to use any of your
Xbox 360 or PS3 games with them, or the save files for those
games. Story-driven series like "Dragon Age" and " Assassin's
Creed " (both confirmed for Xbox One and PS4) have employed
save-game bonuses in the past.

Transferring data from a previous installment — which is
impossible to do between an Xbox 360/Xbox One or PS3/PS4 because
of conflicting system architectures — could grant anything from
an extra character in multiplayer to entire narratives and story
arcs carrying over. In other words, if you've been playing
"Dragon Age" on the Xbox 360, you might want to finish it there,
or else lose a good chunk of what made your playthrough unique.
[See also: Xbox
One vs. PS4: Side-by-Side Comparison ]

Some of the Xbox One's and PS4's most anticipated exclusive
titles won't be touching down right away, either. "Halo 5" and
"Quantum Break" are some of Xbox One's obvious draws, but at
present, there's no set release date for them aside from "2014."
The same goes for "The Order: 1866" on PS4. Buying a system on
launch day won't do much good if its best games are still months
or years away.

Finally, there's the issue of hardware. Modern consoles have a
lot of sensitive parts, and if even one of them malfunctions,
your entire system could get fried. Almost one-third of Xbox 360s
from its original production run eventually succumbed to the
infamous "Red Ring of Death," which rendered the systems
inoperable and could take almost a month to repair. Over time,
consoles become more reliable, and if you wait long enough, they
tend to come down in price and get
slimmer redesigns as well.

If you have your heart set on a next-gen console, then by all
means grab one on launch day and never look back. Otherwise, your
money may be better spent on this holiday season's promising
roster of games with a console in your future once things quiet
down.